//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: The Mare in The Moon // Story: My Little Wizzzard: Friendship is Dangerous // by cullexoh //------------------------------// I'll admit, I had most of the 'Friendship is Magic' arc written well before I ever posted this, so it's highly likely we'll see the elements revived before the month is over. I'm currently debating what pairings to work with Rincewind at the minute. Yes, I'm well aware that his 'Mind' is that of a human, but his body is that of a Pony, a Unicorn at that, and we all know that magic users are horny little buckers deep down. cough-Molestia-cough So yeah, I may do a poll to decide who to pair everyone's favorite Wizzzard with. I personally am considering Applejack or Twilight, but that may change based off how things go. With that said, Mare in The Moon. Chapter 3: Mare in The Moon. Up at sweet Apple Acres, a party was in full swing, the assorted ponies of Ponyville cheering and conversing with one another, enjoying the festivities, as was the norm for ANY party thrown by Pinkamena ‘Pinkie’ Diane Pie. Well, perhaps saying ALL the partygoers were enjoying themselves would be pushing it. One mare, a certain Twilight Sparkle, was sitting off to the side, a morose expression on her face as she sipped a bottle of apple juice, trying to get the taste of alcohol out of her mouth(1). This wouldn’t be too uncommon, were it not for the fact this party was meant for HER. “Hey Twilight!” Spike called out, the little dragon waddling over to his friend, a green band wrapped around one eye, and a pin-on tail in the other “Pinkie Pie’s starting Pin The Tail on the Pony! Wanna play?” “No thanks…” Twilight sighed, unable to muster the energy to voice her irritation in anything louder, the unicorn mare slumping on the table morosely “I swear spike, all the ponies in this town are crazy…nobody seems to care what time it is…!” “Of course they care!” Spike countered energetically, gesturing to the partying ponies “It's the eve of the Summer Sun Celebration. Everypony has to stay up or they'll miss the Princess raising the sun.” He eyed his companion concernedly “You really should lighten up Twilight. It's a party.” “Sorry, but I can’t exactly bring myself to enjoy a party that got me kicked out of the only library in town.” Twilight muttered, huffing disconsolately “I thought I’d have time to learn more about the Elements of Harmony after we cleared everything up, but all this ridiculous ‘friend-making’ has kept me from it!” “It’s not a bad thing to make friends Twilight…” Spike opined, the little dragon eyeing the purple filly with a saddened expression “I mean WE’RE friends, right?” “Oh, Spike, you know that’s not what I meant…” Twilight sighed, looking at her foal-hood companion with an apologetic, if exhausted expression “But you read the legend back in Canterlot too, didn’t you?” “Yeah, yeah I know: longest day of the thousandth year, stars will aid in her escape, everlasting night…” Spike recounted, counting off the points with his claws “But Princess Celestia herself told you it was nothing but an old Mare’s Tale, didn’t she?” “She did…” Twilight murmured, looking up at the moon overhead, shivering at the shadowy image of a unicorn that several craters had formed on its surface “And believe me, I’d like nothing more than to believe it was just that…” Spike sighed, shaking his head in exasperation, only to blink as a trumpet sounded, looking up to see the revellers were making towards the path back to Ponyville, where he could distantly see several gathering around the Carousel boutique “Come on, Twilight!” he urged, tugging on the unicorn’s foreleg for emphasis “It's time to watch the sun rise!” “Alright I’m coming…” Twilight mumbled, getting to her feet, a little shakily, as whatever that Scumble stuff had been, a few cups of apple juice hadn’t been enough to completely rid her of the little she’d swallowed back at the Library “At the very least, I’ll be able to ask the princess why she never told me there was an actual WIZARD living here.” While magical ponies were hardly anything to boast about, as unicorns and even pegasi boasted varying levels of magical acuity, only a scarce few were ever allotted the title of Wizard. The only one Twilight knew of was Starswirl, a descendent of the legendary Starswirl the Bearded and the only Earth Pony in the line, who had gone on a journey some time ago and hadn’t been seen since(2). To learn that there was ANOTHER Wizard, one unconnected to the Starswirl line, living out here in the boondocks was like finding a priceless gem amongst a pile of rocks. ‘And speaking of rocks…’ she muttered, eyes narrowing as a certain annoying ball of pink energy hopped towards her as she lined up with the others to watch the festivities ‘Here’s one that’s got few cluttering up her brain…’ “Isn't this exciting?” Pinkie Pie asked, literally bouncing on her hooves in excitement “Are you excited? Cause I'm excited, I've never been so excited… well, except for that time that I saw you walking into town and I went…” Twilight sighed, doing her very best to block out the worst of the filly’s rambling, knowing she meant well, but after everything that had gone wrong today, she wanted nothing more than for the Princess to raise the sun so she and Spike could go back to Canterlot where they belonged. Sure enough, the sound of a fanfare, accompanied by an impressive chorus of birdsong directed by Fluttershy and her avian friends, heralded a dimming of the lights, the assembled ponies looking on eagerly as the Mayor of Ponyville, Mayor Mare, stepped onto the stage and cleared her throat primly. “Fillies and Gentlecolts!” the bespectacled mare called out, smiling at her fellow residents as they turned their undivided attention towards the stage “As mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!” As expected, the voices of the crowd rose in jubilation, the Pegasi taking to the air in order to make space for their earthbound brethren, even Twilight’s spirits rising somewhat in the face of this public show of support for her teacher, though that still didn’t put her worries to rest, glancing fretfully up at the Moon, only to flinch as, before her very eyes, the craters that supposedly depicted Nightmare Moon VANISHED. “And now,” Mayor Mare called out, heedless of the ominous sign as a drumroll sounded throughout the carousel boutique “it is my great honour to introduce to you the ruler of our land. The very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria: Ready?” At her words, a fanfare sounded, Rarity tugging on a rope to part the curtains behind which the Princess was to appear in a burst of magical sunlight, only for the spotlight to shine on an empty balcony, the assembled ponies gasping in shock and confusion at the absence of their beloved ruler. “This…can't be good…” Twilight murmured, dread rising from the pit of the Unicorn’s stomach even as Mayor Mare tried to calm the alarmed ponies down. “Ooh! Ooh! I love guessing games!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed, earning a look of exasperation from Twilight, the hyperactive pony literally trotting on the spot as she glanced all over the packed boutique “Is she hiding?” she wondered, as if honestly expecting Twilight to have the answer, even as Rarity, who’d gone backstage to see if there had been some sort of complication, returned and declared the Princess had simply vanished “Ooh, she's good…” the pink pony declared in a stage whisper, only to gasp in surprise, a sentiment shared by almost all the other ponies, as a cloud of dark purple mist began to gather on the podium where Celestia was to appear, convalescing into the form of a tall, regal looking black Alicorn with teal coloured, catlike eyes and a mane and tail seemingly composed of a cloud of the same dark mist. Unlike Celestia, whose adornments consisted of a necklace, crown and golden slippers, this Alicorn sported a blue helm with matching breastplate, and whereas Celestia’s cutie mark was a shining sun, this black Mare bore a Crescent Moon over a Purple cloud that matched her mane. “Nightmare Moon!” Twilight exclaimed, gaping up at the fallen Princess of Equestria in horror, even as Spike toppled off her back in a dead faint. “Oh, my beloved subjects.” The Dark Alicorn called out, her voice as regal and intimidating as Celestia’s had been warm and inviting, her catlike eyes gazing over the crowd of cowering ponies with dark amusement “It's been so long since I've seen your precious little sun-loving faces.” A shiver ran through the crowd at her words, and well they SHOULD be nervous, for she had not forgotten how they spurned her beautiful night for her sister’s daylight. Indeed, it had been the memory of that very scorn that had kept her sane during her imprisonment. “What did you do with our Princess?” a crass voice challenged, the Mare in the Moon’s catlike eyes snapping towards a rainbow-maned Pegasus Pony, who made as if to charge the stage, only to be held back by an Earth Pony, of the Apple Clan it would appear, judging by her Cutie Mark, who had wisely intervened to save her friend from suffering for her rash attitude. “Why?” she asked, chuckling in dark amusement as she gazed down at the insolent filly “Am I not royal enough for you?” her amusement faded as quickly as it came as she narrowed her catlike eyes at the pair “Don't you know who I am?” “Ooh! Ooh! More guessing games!” an annoying voice called out, the perpetrator an Earth pony with the most SHOCKING pink fur the Mare in the Moon had ever seen. Just looking at her for too long was threatening to make her head hurt “Um...Hokey Smokes! How about Queen Meanie? No! Black Snooty, Black Snooty-!” The Apple Clan Mare, who was still holding back the Rash Rainbow-Hued one, again showed her wisdom by stuffing a cupcake into the Annoying Pink One’s mouth, for had she been allowed to continue it was highly likely that Nightmare’s temper would have snapped. As it were, it was taking every ounce of the Mare in the Moon’s self-control not to silence her in a more PERMANENT fashion*. “Does my crown no longer count, now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years?” she demanded, glaring at a pathetic looking yellow Pegasus, who cowered before her regal form, “Did you not recall the legend?” she demanded, using her mane to hold the cheeks of the white Unicorn who’d opened the curtains in place, flicking it mockingly in her ire “Did you not see the signs?” “I did!” a voice called out, Nightmare’s head snapping up as the crowd parted to reveal a little purple unicorn with a pink star adorning her flank, standing next to what appeared to be an unconscious dragon-spawn “And I know who you are.” She declared, her eyes narrowed accusingly as she had the audacity to glare at her Princess “You're the Mare in the Moon: Nightmare Moon!” “Well, well, well…” the Dark Alicorn noted, a smile of Dark amusement adorning her face as she gazed down at the little unicorn, ignoring the gasps of horror and shock from the assembled ponies at the revelation of her identity “somepony who remembers me.” Her eyes narrowed “Then you should also know why I'm here…” she chuckled darkly as the look of defiance fled from the unicorn’s eyes, replaced with such delicious fear that she couldn’t help but chuckle at how helpless she looked “Remember this day, little ponies,” she declared, spreading her wings as she gazed down at the terrified crowd “For it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will last forever!” With this declaration, she threw her head back, dark, ominous laughter tearing from her lips as the mist from her mane and tail filled the room, thunder crashing and lighting flashing ominously overhead, as if she had summoned a storm with which to smite all who opposed her. “Seize her!” a voice called out, Nightmare’s eyes snapping open to glare at the supposed leader of this little hamlet, who was directing three Pegasi in the garb of her sister’s honour guard towards her “Only she knows where the Princess is!” “Stand back, you foals!” She snarled, her eyes glowing with eldritch magic, bolts of lightning striking the golden clad guards out of the air, the Mare in the Moon cackling darkly as she wrapped herself in her man, transforming into nothing more than dark mist, which surged out into the glorious night sky. ‘Ah…how I have missed this…’ she sighed, basking in the familiar feeling of her beloved night, the lights of countless stars shining down on her, as if welcoming her home after her forced exile to her Lunar Prison ‘Soon everyone will come to appreciate the beauty of the stars-!’ She trailed off, freezing in her tracks, having sensed something amiss just as she was about to escape the little hamelt. A power that was alien, and yet inherently familiar to her at the same time. ‘What could it be…?’ she wondered, her eyes forming in the cloud of darkness, gazing down at the unassuming hamlet, trying to determine the origin of that strange feeling ‘It couldn’t be Celestia…it took me a thousand years and the correct alignment of stars for me to muster the strength needed to slip my chains, there’s no way she managed to do the same in such a short space of time!’ Before she could determine the source of the strange feeling, however, she noticed the familiar form of the purple Unicorn galloping past, the recumbent form of the infant dragon tossed over her back like a sack of potatoes. ‘Where is she off to in such a hurry?’ the fallen Alicorn muttered, catlike eyes narrowing in suspicion as she made to follow the filly, noting with interest that the alien feeling grew stronger as she did so ‘Intriguing…’ Rincewind sighed, the poni-fied Wizard balancing precariously atop his ladder once more as he tried to once again restore order to the library in the aftermath of one of Pinkie’s infamous parties. “Honestly, that pony will be the death of me…” he muttered, shoving one of the books on the Equestrian-Griffonian war back into place a little harder than was necessary, making sure to pat it comfortingly on the spine before moving onwards, as it wasn't the books fault he was associated with the town fruitcake “If it’s not spiking the punch with Scumble it’s throwing a party for some idiot pony that thinks bringing a fire breathing DRAGON into a library filled with valuable books is a good idea…’ As if the words were a summons, the door to the Library slammed open, Rincewind letting out a shriek as he toppled off his precarious perch, falling onto a cart of books, which collapsed under the weight. “Oh…sorry…” a voice offered, Rincewind cracking an eye open to see the purple unicorn from earlier standing near his desk, her horn glowing as she used her magic to levitate some of the books he had lying about “But it’s an emergency, I need to find a book on the Elements of Harmony!” “The What of Who now?” Rincewind stammered, grimacing as he pushed himself off the ground, only to yelp as a particularly heavy tome clipped his ear “OI! Don’t go throwing the books around! They don’t like it!” “We gotta stop Nightmare!” a voice cried out suddenly, Rincewind blinking, turning his head only to rear up on his hind legs in alarm at the sight of the baby dragon. “GET THAT WALKING FIRE HAZARD OUT OF MY LIBRARY!” the Wizard yelled, heedless of the fact that the little dragon had apparently passed out in a nearby knitting basket he’d been using to patch up his robe and hat from time to time. “Don’t shout, you’ll wake him!” the damnable filly chastised, still carelessly tossing around the books that Rincewind had spent hours setting right “Good grief, he’s only a BABY dragon, lighten up!” “In case you didn’t notice, miss, we happen to be inside a TREE.” Rincewind snapped, trying to make the damnable mare see reason “A tree, I might add, filled to the brim with highly flammable books! All it’ll take is one little hiccup from that overgrown Klatchian Fire Engine and this WHOLE PLACE will light up like a fireworks factory!” “Would you relax?” the mare demanded, frowning at him as if HE were the one who had barged into HER home and started making demands “Spike hasn’t set anything on fire accidentally since he was three years old, and I’m sure a WIZARD such as yourself could put out a few minor fires.” She turned her back on the sputtering Wizard “Now quit complaining and help me find a book on the Elements of Harmony-!” “And just what ARE the Elements of Harmony?” a familiar voice demanded, Rincewind and the Unicorn whipping round just in time to see Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie enter the library, the blue Pegasus getting right up into the startled unicorn’s face “And how did you know about Nightmare Moon, huh? Are you a spy?” “Simmer down, Sally.” Applejack cautioned, the Stetson sporting pony yanking her airborne friend out of the unicorn’s face by tugging on her tail “She ain't no spy. But she sure knows what's going on. Don't you, Twilight?” “What’s going on?” Rincewind demanded, looking between the group in confusion, noting with concern that they seemed to be rather on edge, evidenced by Fluttershy anxiously shifting from hoof to hoof, and Pinkie Pie actually being QUIET, which was never a good thing “What’s happened?” “Oh Rincewind, Darling it was HORRIBLE!” Rarity gasped, the ever-dramatic unicorn shaking her mane in frustration, “Some dreadful mare calling herself Nightmare Moon crashed the Summer Sun Celebration, kidnapped Princess Celestia, and said that there would be no more daytime!” “Nightmare Moon?” Rincewind repeated, blinking at the dressmaker as if she’d sprouted another head “You mean that statue at the edge of town where you lot dumped perfectly good candy in front of last fall? That winged unicorn that’s supposed to live in the moon?” “How can you not know about Nightmare Moon?” the purple unicorn, Twilight he dimly recalled, exclaimed, looking at him like he was insane “What kind of Wizard are you?” “Not a very good one.” Rincewind shot back, not ashamed in the slightest even as he returned the glare the unicorn filly sent his way “And don’t you go giving me that look miss! I may not be good a very good Wizard, but at least I have the common sense not to burst into someone else’s home and start tossing their books around like they’re garbage!” Twilight flinched, lowering her head in shame as she pawed at the ground “I...I’m sorry about barging in like that…” she offered, looking so downtrodden and small even Rincewind couldn’t bring himself to stay angry “It’s just…I WARNED the Princess that something like this would happen…” she closed her eyes in shame “But she wouldn’t listen, and now…now I don’t know WHAT to do…” Rincewind eyed the downtrodden unicorn in silence for a moment, aware that the rest of the fillies seemed to be eyeing him expectantly, finally breaking down in the face of their overwhelming peer pressure(3) and trotting over to the ‘E’ section of the magical books, skimming the titles briefly before pulling out a thick, leather-bound tome and setting it on the table. “The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide.” He revealed, turning to regard the awestruck Twilight with a solemn, almost reproachful expression “It was under ‘E’.” “Oh…” Twilight stammered, flushing in embarrassment, much to the amusement of Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash, the purple unicorn trotting over to the book, using her horn to turn it to the right page “Let’s see…there are six Elements of Harmony, but only five are known: Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty and Loyalty. The Sixth is a complete Mystery.” “Can’t be as impressive as all that if there are only six of them…” Rincewind muttered, earning a quirked brow from Twilight “I mean, you need more than seven of something to make it REALLY powerful.” “Really? I always thought it was Seven…?” Twilight murmured, making a note to ask Celestia about it if, WHEN, they got rid of Nightmare Moon, turning her attention back to the book “It is said the last known location of the five elements was in the ancient castle of the royal pony sisters, which is located in what is now called…” she swallowed “The Everfree Forest!” Rincewind didn’t miss the looks of apprehension that formed on the faces of the others, including Rainbow Dash, and so made a mental note to steer clear of wherever this ‘Everfree’ Forest was in future. Though knowing his luck, he’d probably end up going in there sooner or later. “Whee!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed, the energetic pink pony rearing up on her hind legs, her blue eyes glinting in excitement at the prospect of adventure “Sounds like fun! Let's go!” “Whoa-whoa-whoa!” Twilight stammered, looking at the other filly’s in alarm “Look, I appreciate the offer girls, but I'd really rather do this on my own.” “No can do, sugar cube.” Applejack countered, shaking her head, her features set in a determined smile that Rincewind knew from experience meant you weren’t likely to change her mind with a blunt instrument “We sure ain't lettin' any friend of ours go into that creepy place alone. We're stickin' to you like caramel on a candy apple. “Especially if there's candy apples in there!” Pinkie insisted, earning a look of exasperation from Twilight and Rincewind for her contribution “What? Those things are good! “Yes, well, count ME out.” Rincewind muttered, the assembled Filly’s looking up in surprise to see the Wizard had backed away from them, his ears pressed flat against his head and a determined frown on his face “I’ve had more than enough excitement today, you’re not dragging ME out on this magical scavenger hunt!” “But you heard what Twilight said darling!” Rarity insisted, the marshmallow coloured unicorn eyeing the Wizzzard encouragingly “The fate of Equestria depends on us finding the Elements of Harmony!” “Ah let him stay.” Rainbow Dash scoffed, the rainbow maned Pegasus waving a hoof dismissively in the Wizard’s general direction “He’d only wind up slowing us down, I mean, what good’s a wizard that can’t even SPELL the word WIZARD?” “Rainbow Dash! That was uncalled for!” Rarity chided, sending the Pegasus an affronted frown before smiling encouragingly at Rincewind “I’m sure Rincewind has several spells that could help us out.” “Er…well that is to say…”Rincewind stammered, looking rather flustered, for while his mind was that of a man, his body was currently that of a unicorn, and the sight of Rarity’s smile was getting a part of him wish he was still capable of wearing trousers “I do know ONE spell…actually the only one I know…” “There y’see?” Rainbow insisted, crossing her arms triumphantly as Rarity and the others blinked at the revelation “What good is a hack wizard who only knows ONE measly spell gonna be?” “A damn side better than a Pegasus that can’t go half a shot glass of Scumble without trying to fly through walls I should think.” Rincewind snarked back, earning a glare from the blue Pegasus that was interrupted yet again by Applejack stepping between the two. “Now settle down y’all.” the Apple Mare urged, her tone calm yet firm as she levelled a warning look towards Rainbow Dash and an understanding glance at Rincewind “If Rincey says he ain’t comin’, then that’s his decision and we should respect it. ‘Sides, time’s a wastin’ and those Elements ain’t gonna find themselves.” “Applejack is right.” Twilight agreed, looking around at her unexpected allies with a determined expression “We need to move fast, the longer we wait, the lower our chances are of finding the Elements before Nightmare Moon does.” “Ya’ll heard her girls! Let’s move ‘em out!” Applejack ordered, the band of two Earth, Pegasus and Unicorn ponies apiece setting off at a canter, or flutter, towards the bridge leading out of Ponyville, Rincewind watching them depart with an unreadable expression on his face, before closing the door to the library behind him, unaware that the entire conversation had been heard by a third party. ‘So…’ Nightmare muttered, her cat-like eyes narrowing as she glared after the Mane Six ‘It would seem that the Elements of Harmony still exist after all…’ In truth, she had wondered why Celestia hadn’t called upon the powers of the Elements when she banished her into the sun. After all, it had only been by harnessing the power of those accursed stones that she had managed to defeat her last time. She had assumed that they were destroyed, or at the very least depowered, as she could not imagine her own SISTER could have forgotten the prophecy of her return. ‘If it were ME, I’d have kept the damn things on me at all times.’ She muttered darkly, scowling at her elder sister’s arrogance and naivety, before turning her attention back to the Library, peering through one of the upper windows at Rincewind, who was picking up the books Twilight had tossed around with a tenderness that was admirable. ‘THIS is what amounts to a Wizard these days?’ she muttered, looking on in disbelief as the scraggly unicorn went about his duties, without once thinking to use his horn to levitate the books despite their number ‘Starswirl’s line has certainly gone to pot in the last thousand years…’ And yet, despite her dismissal of the scruffy, pathetic looking colt in the tattered crimson robe and wizard hat ‘By the Moon, he can’t even SPELL Wizard!’, there was something about him that called out to her, something alien, yet at the same time inherently familiar, that continued to draw her in. ‘Probably the likeness to Starswirl…’ she muttered, recalling her old friend and chess partner from the ‘old days’, only to shake her head with a scowl ‘It matters not, there’ll be time enough to get to the bottom of this once I’ve nipped this little rebellion in the bud.’ So saying, the cloud of darkness sped off in the direction of Everfree forest, intent on putting an end to the last threat to her Eternal Kingdom of Night. Little bit Shorter this time, at least in my opinion, but it's the only way I can find to make the story flow. And now, Rincewind isn't 'attracted' to Rarity, Rarity's simply naturally charming and Rincewind's body reacted as many a Colt's would. It is only his mentality as a Wizard, and the fact he still adapting to his equine body, that allowed him to resist. 1 - An impossibility given the content of Scumble. She'd have had more luck with bleach. 2 - Except for the occasional post card depicting her, an Earth pony with an hourglass cutie mark, a wall-eyed Pegasus pony and a strange blue box, usually relaxing on some alien background. Strangely enough, the self-same Pegasus was usually the one to deliver the postcards, all of which were wrapped in blue envelopes. 3 - Fluttershy's in particular had more impact than entire store window of lonely puppies on the old heartstrings.